Open Source Job Opportunities: DevOps & Cloud Lead The Pack

According to a recent survey, demand for open source professionals is on the rise, with plenty of job opportunities for IT pros with the right skills, including DevOps and open source cloud computing platforms like OpenStack and CloudStack.

The Linux Foundation and Dice.com teamed up to conduct a survey of hiring managers and open source professionals earlier this year. Survey respondents were ask about job needs and preferences. Hiring managers from businesses of all sizes, plus government entities and staffing agencies were contacted, and over 400 such individuals responded to the survey, along with over 4,500 practicing open source professionals who also participated.

The open source professionals who participated indicated in the majority (71 percent) that they've been working in an open source related position for three or more years, so this appears to be more than a flash in the pan. The results of this survey are pretty interesting, so you may want to download a copy from the Linux Foundation site (registration and contact information is required to obtain a download link), or at least look at the infographic the two parties produced to summarize the survey's findings.

2016 Open Source Jobs Report Key Findings

What emerged from this survey? Here's a summary of the results, which indicate that open source jobs are available and perhaps even plentiful, and that qualified open source talent to fill them remains in high demand.

What hiring managers and employers said:

87% of employers said that it's hard to find open source talent

59% of hiring managers are trying to fill vacant jobs with open source skills and knowledge requirements

73% of open source pros have been contacted by a headhunter in the last half-year, trying to lure them into other positions

51% of hiring managers report a need for open source cloud skills and knowledge as the top-priority staffing need

58% of hiring managers are looking for DevOps professionals, which makes DevOps a high-demand role in open source staffing

What open source IT professionals said:

86% of open source pros believe that open source knowledge has helped them advance their careers, but only 2% say money and perks are the best parts of their jobs

31% appreciate the interesting projects they get to work on

18% are excited about working with leading edge technologies

17% are motivated by working as part of a global community effort

50% agree that cloud is the top open source skill to acquire and know

19% of them are interested in containers, which comes in second in their responses

What does this all add up to? First, Linux powers much if not most of the open source skills and knowledge base in this area of the IT landscape. This makes our list of the best Linux certifications worth another look...or perhaps two! Second, with cloud a key area in the open source space, technologies like OpenStack, CloudStack, and so forth, are acquiring increased interest, study, and devotees in the ranks of IT professionals (check out our Guide To Open Source Cloud Computing Software). Clearly, it's a great market to be in already, and not a bad market to target for future career growth and development.